Which Industries Have The Most Self-Made Female Moguls

Of the 100 names on this year’s Richest Self-Made Women list, more than a quarter hail from a single industry.

by John Hyatt

In today’s economy, the technology sector is a decent bet for those looking to strike gold. That holds true for the centimillionaires and billionaires on Forbes’ annual America’s Richest Self-Made Women list.

Of the 100 female moguls on this year’s ranking, 28 made their money working in technology. With a combined net worth of over $37 billion, these pioneers have founded, cofounded or worked at a range of technology-enabled businesses, from dating site Bumble (Whitney Wolfe Herd) to cloud software provider Confluent (Neha Nekarhede). Half of these tech tycoons are founders of their businesses, but two of the wealthiest and most prominent were early employees: Sheryl Sandberg at Facebook (net worth: $1.9 billion) and Meg Whitman at eBay (net worth: $6.4 billion). Three of the self-made women in this category — Jacqueline Reses, Alyssa Henry and Sarah Friar — made a significant part of their fortunes at Square, the $9.5 billion (2020 revenues) payments colossus.

Fashion and retail is the second most common source of wealth among America’s richest self-made women, featuring 20 women with a collective net worth of $19.5 billion. That includes Kim Kardashian West, the founder of shapewear company Skims; her estimated $1.2 billion fortune is nearly double that of younger half-sister Kylie Jenner’s estimated $620 million (Thanksgiving may get awkward). Of course, more fame doesn’t always mean more money: Judy Love is no household name, but the 84-year-old entrepreneur tops the fashion and retail category with an estimated net worth of $5.2 billion, giving her the No. 4 overall spot on this year’s list. The Oklahoma-based entrepreneur cofounded truckstop chain Love’s Travel Stops & Country in 1964 with her husband Tom.

Media and entertainment comes in third, with 12 self-made women who have collectively amassed $7.16 billion in wealth in the public spotlight’s glare. Fresh off her high-profile interview of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Oprah Winfrey leads this category with an estimated $2.7 billion net worth. Newcomer Dolly Parton’s estimated $350 million fortune lands her at No. 86 overall, but the country star is No. 1 in the hearts — or should we say, arms — of many, thanks to her $1 million donation to Vanderbilt for research that helped lead to Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine. Also in this category are Black Entertainment Television cofounder Sheila Johnson ($750 million), singer-songwriter Taylor Swift ($550 million) and TV host Ellen DeGeneres ($370 million).

In fourth place is finance and investments, with 10 self-made fortunes, followed by healthcare, food and beverage, and construction and engineering. Below is a breakdown of how America’s 100 wealthiest self-made women made their money.